St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School is highly regarded within the local community and by the London Borough of Brent who has placed it in their highest category of schools. We had a successful Ofsted in 2013 when the school was judged 'Outstanding in all areas of the inspection and St Joseph's is now a National Support School.
Teaching each pupil to fully develop their talents and aptitudes, to be able to meet realistic expectations, and to expect demands to be made upon them. We believe that this is what parents want from the school and to do otherwise would be a waste of a child’s potential.
The curriculum is a broad and balanced one taught within the Catholic ethos of the school. The curriculum is demanding, challenging and rigorous. Pupils will learn good habits of work, develop their intellectual, moral, and spiritual skills to emerge as well-educated, responsible, and Catholic citizens.
Pupils are taught using a variety of methods including whole class teaching, group work, and on a one-to-one basis. Teachers are very conscious that every child matters and adapt their teaching methods accordingly. The school actively promotes the National Curriculum aims to foster independent learning.
At St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School we strive to create a stimulating environment so that by learning, playing, and working together, we openly follow Christ’s teachings. We seek to offer every person the opportunity to be a unique and valued individual, sharing and developing belief in the teachings of Jesus through every day relationships and mutual respect in our dealings with one another.
To achieve our mission:
- We stand on holy ground.
- We will always open our doors in welcome.
- We will always love and care for each other as Jesus taught us.
- We will always place the Word of God at the heart of our school.
- We will always be witnesses to our faith by following in the footsteps of Christ.
St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School is a community where the spiritual, cultural, and personal worlds within which we live are harmonized to form the roots from which grow our values, motivation, aspirations, and the moral imperatives that inform our choices and actions as persons. When pupils join our school they become part of this community. Every day starts with an Act of Worship, we give thanks before lunch and we end the day with a prayer.
We offer each child a broad, balanced, and relevant curriculum of the highest standard to meet their spiritual, emotional, moral, intellectual, and physical needs and to prepare them for the responsibilities of adult life.
The program of Religious Education we follow is in line with the Catholic Directory as specified by the Bishops Conference of England and Wales. Religious Education is taught to all children in the school for two and a half hours per week and is considered central to the whole school curriculum. We follow key teachings from Catholic traditions that are taken from the RECD (Religious Education Curriculum Directory). Through this directory, the children are taught the basics of Catholic faith and morality, with constant reference to their own life experiences.
We have excellent links with our parish church, The Shrine Of Our Lady Of Willesden, with the parish priest making weekly visits to the school as part of our pastoral program. The school attends mass at The Shrine Of Our Lady Of Willesden on special occasions including Christmas and St Joseph’s Feast Day. The parish priest also celebrates mass at the school throughout the year including the celebration service for those who have recently made their First Holy Communion.
Teachers are committed to ensuring each pupil fully develops their knowledge, skills, and understanding, so that they can meet the high expectations set.
Our challenging curriculum starts with building firm foundations in English and Mathematics which is taught within the Catholic ethos of the school. This means that pupils will find other areas of the curriculum more accessible and relevant. Prioritizing depth of knowledge in both English and Mathematics ensures academic success. We dedicate a significant proportion of the school's timetable to Reading, Writing, and Mathematics to promote a love of reading, to develop fluent communication, and to build confidence in mathematical skills.
The curriculum is demanding, challenging and rigorous. Pupils will learn good habits of work, develop their intellectual, moral, and spiritual skills to emerge as well-educated, responsible, and Catholic citizens ready for further education and future careers. Educational curriculum visits, full-day or 1/2 day outings, are arranged during the school year. They are a positive part of the curriculum and are centered upon topics covered and have strong educational content.
